Folding kite



Aug. 13, 1963 Filed July 14, 1961 A. RESNICK FOLDING KITE 3 Sheets-Sheet1 Arthur Resm'ck 1 N VE N TOR BY M M9,

A. RESNICK FOLDING KITE Aug. 13, 1963 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed July 14,1961 Arfhur Rash/ck INVENTOR BY m A. RESNICK FOLDING KITE Aug. 13, 19635 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed July 14, 1961 Arllwr Resn/c/r 1N VENTOR. A...406:". 5%,, 29%

United States Patent 3,100,895 FQLDING KITE Arthur Resnick, 4702 S. 12thAve., Tucson, Ariz. Filed July 14, 1961, Ser. No. 124,152 7 Claims. (Cl.244-153) This invention relates to kites and more particularly to kitesof the folding type.

Accordingly, it is the primary object of this invention to provide akite which may be easily folded up into a compact package forfacilitating storage and transportation thereof.

It is another object of the invention to provide a kite that will fly invery minute winds, and yet will perform satisfactorily in an extremelystrong wind.

It is another object of the invention to provide a kite that isextremely light in weight, is strong, and very durable in use.

It is yet another object of the invention to provide a kite having anovel tail, and in one form the tail may be used for holding the kite ina folded condition.

It is another object of the invention to provide a kite which does notrequire the usual long tail.

It is still another object of the invention to provide a kite which]appears as a disc or a flying saucer when in operation.

It is still another object of the invention to provide a kite of suchdesign and having aerodynamic characteristics which cause the kite tofly almost vertically above the operator thereof.

It is still another object of the invention to provide a kite which maybe opened or folded instantaneously,

and which is useful not only for purposes of entertainrnent, but alsomay be used for supporting radio and radar aeriais and other electronicor wave devices.

These together with other objects and advantages which will becomesubsequently app-arentres-ide in the details of construction andoperation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, referencebeing had to the accornpanying drawings forming a part thereof, whereinlike numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view showing the kite unfolded and flying;

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged view showing the kite folded;

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged vertical cross sectional view takensubstantially on the plane of line 3-3 in FIG- URE 1;

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged plan view of the central portion of the kite;

FIGURE 5 is an exploded view in perspective showing the manner ofassembling the framework of the kite;

FIGURE 6 is an enlarged cross sectional view taken substantially on theplane of line 66 of FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 7 is a view similar to FIGURE 1 showing a port-ion of a kite witha modified tail thereon;

FIGURE 8 is an enlarged vertical cross sectional view takensubstantially on the plane of line 8-8 of FIG- URE 3;

FIGURE 9 is a perspective view illustrating the kite and tail shown inFIGURE 7 in the folded position;

FIGURE 10 is an enlarged elevational view partially in section andlooking in the direction of the arrows 1G1 i in FIGURE 7;

FIGURE 11 is an enlarged cross sectional view taken substantially on theplane of line 1111 of FIGURE 10;

FIGURE 12 is an elevational view of another modified tail assembly; and

FIGURE 13 is an enlarged vertical view taken substantially on the planeof line 13-13 in FIGURE 12.

As shown in the drawings, and particularly in FIG- URES 1, 3 and 5, thekite Iii comprises an annular hub 12 which telescopically receives thelower end of a post 14 and is rigidly secured thereto by conventionalmeans such as cement. The post 14- extends through an annular sleeve 16which is axially slidable on the post. The hub 2 comprises the center ofthe kite which is of conical shape when unfolded and further comprises aplurality of radially and upwardly extending main ribs 18 which areequally spaced from one another as shown in FIG- URE 3 and the innerends thereof are secured to the upper peripheral edge of the hub 12. Themain ribs 18 are pivot-ally connected to the periphery of the hub 12 bymeans of paper hinges 24 which are of rectangular shape and comprise twoarms 22 and 24. The arms 22 overlap the inner ends of the main ribs andare cemented thereto. The arms 24 overlap the peripheral side surface ofthe hub 12 and are cemented thereto.

The outer peripheral ends of the main ribs 18 are circumscribed by acircular piece of string or twine 26 and cemented thereto. Theundersurfaces of the ribs 18 are covered by a single piece of paper,plastic or other light material or substance 28 which is of conicalshape, extends between the ribs and is cemented thereto. The outer endor peripheral edge 30 of the covering paper 28 is folded upwardly overthe string 26 and outer end of the ribs 18 and back upon itself. Thefolded portion 30 as shown in FIGURES 3 and 6 is cemented to the outerends of the ribs and to the outer peripheral edge portion 32 of thecovering 28.

The inner or central portion of the covering 28 is folded downwardly andcemented to the outer periphery of the hub 12 as shown at 34. Thus it isapparent that the inner peripheral portion 36 and inner edge portion 34of the covering also functions as a hinge in a similar manner as thehinge 20 for the main ribs 18. The paper 28 is preferably of light andtough variety such as bamboo paper.

The central port-ion of each main rib 18 is pivotally connected to theoperating sleeve 16 by means of an operating rib 38. The outer end ofeach operating rib is pivotally connected to the central portion of amain rib by means of two paper hinges 2i} which are secured by cement38' to the ribs in the same manner as which the above described hinge2%} is secured.

The inner end of each operating rib 38 is secured to the lowerperipheral edge of the sleeve 16 by means of a flexible conical memberat having a cylindrical hub 42. The conical member and its hub 42 arepreferably formed of paper and are cemented to the inner ends of theoperating ribs 38 and the outer peripheral surface of the sleeve l6respectively. The hub 42 is preferably enclosed in a sleeve 44 which iscemented thereto.

The upper end of the post 14 has a diametrioal bore therethrough whichslidably receives a stop pin 46. The pin 46 is preferably made of wireand has a head 48 bent into the form of a double loop. The head 4il ised to one end of a securing string 5G whose other end also extendsthrough the bore 52 in the upper end of the post 42 and is tied thereto.

The parts l2, 14, '16, 18 and 38 are all rigid and are preferably formedof some light wood such as Balsa or spruce or other light materialsincluding plastics or compositions thereof.

The tail assembly 54 as shown in FIGURE 3 comprises a plurality of tailribs 56 diverging in a rearward connection and connected together attheir forward ends by a cord member 58. The ribs 56 are connectedtogether at their central and rear portions also by cord members whichare tied individually to each rib and extends therebctween as shown inFIGURE 8 at 6h. The upper ends of these cord members extend through thePatented Aug. 13, 1963 kite covering 28 and are tied to the main ribs18. 'llhe tail assembly 54 is also covered by a paper covering 62composed of the same material as the covering 28.

A V-shaped bridle string 64 is connected to the'central portions byknots 66 of two forwardly extending main ribs. The two ribs to which thebridle string 64 is connected are spaced three ribs apart. The apex ofthe V-shaped bridle string 64 is connected by a knot 68 to a pilotstring 70 and a main string 72. Preferably, the knot 68 slides along thestring 72 and 70 which are preferably one integral piece.

FIGURE 1 shows the kite unfolded and in flying position. The relativeangle between the surface of the kite and the main string 72 may beadjusted by sliding the knot 68 along string 72. The tension in thepilot string 70 maintains the tail assembly 54 in an expanded position.The tail assemib-ly 54 acts as a rudder and stabilizes the kite.

FIGURE 2 illustrates one way the kite may be folded.

To fold the kite, it is only necessary to withdraw the pin 46 from theaperture 52 of post 14 and axially separate sleeve 16' fromhub 12whereby the inner ends of the operating ribs 38 are pulled upwardly, andtheir outer ends then pull main ribs 18 inwardly to the position shownin FIGURE 2. The entire kite assembly folds in a manner similar to thefolding of a conventional umbrella. The ribs 56 of the tail assemblyalso fold together as shown in FIGURE 2, however, it is preferable tofold these ribs down over the outer surface of the folded ribs 18 ratherthan having them stacked as shown in FIGURE 2. The entire kite assemblymay then be held together by a string 74.

In the form shown in FIGURES 7, 10 and 11, the tail assembly 54 isshaped as a hollow truncated cone and is preferably composed of somerigid light material such as Balsa wood or spruce. The pilot string 70'may be connected to the rear central edge of the kite and extend throughthe hollow interior of the tail assembly 54'. The tail assembly 54' ispreferably connected to the kite 10 by means of two spaced wire U-clips76 whose free ends extend into and are secured to the upper surface ofthe tail assembly. The U-clips 76 are supported by pieces of string 78which are passed through the U-clips, over the rear portion of one ofthe rearwardly extending main ribs 18, and have their free ends tiedtogether to form loops. The tail assembly 54 may be disconnected fromthe kite by unt-ying and withdrawing string 78 from the U-clips 76.

FIGURE 9 illustrates how the tail assembly 54 may be telescoped over thefolded kite 10 to maintain it in its folded condition.

FIGURES 12 and 13 illustrate an alternative tail assembly 54" whichmerely comprises a rigid plate of triangular shape and having itsrearward and forward ends rounded. The tail assembly 54" has its upperedge straddled by two U-clips 83 whose legs are cemented thereto at 85as shown in FIGURE 13. The rear portion of a rearwardly extending rib 18has two spaced L-shaped spring clips fixed thereto. Each spring clipcomprises a vertical leg 8-9 extending into and cemented '4 to the rib18 and a horizontal rearwardl extending leg 87 inclined to the rib andwhich may be deflected to extend into one of the U-clips 83. Thus theU-clips and L-shaped clips comprise a means for releasably hinging tailassembly 54" to the kite.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles ofthe invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes willreadily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limitthe invention to the exact construction and operation shown anddescribed, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalentsmay be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention asclaimed.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. A kite comprising a plurality of radially diverging ribs, a centerpost, means pivot-all connecting the inner ends of the ribs to said postadjacent one end thereof, means limiting movement of said ribs between afirst position extending substantially parallel to said post and asecond position substantially perpendicular to said post, meansreleasably maintaining said ribs in said second position, a one-pieceflexible covering secured to and extending between said ribs, and a tailsecured to the kite and extending radially inwardly from the peripheryof the kite to a point spaced outwardly from the center post, said tailbeing orientated entirely beneath the plane of said kite andsubstantially perpendicular thereto when said ribs are in saidsecond-position.

2. A device as defined in claim 1 wherein said tail comprises foldableribs connected together by a flexible covering.

3. A device as defined in claim 2 wherein said foldable ribs have theinner ends thereof pivotally secured together, said foldable ribsdiverging outwardly from said inner ends.

4. A device as defined in claim 3 including means for maintaining thetail in an expanded condition during the flying of the kite.

5. A device as defined in claim 4 including a flexible cord tied to thecentral portion of each foldable rib, said cord limiting the unfoldingof the tail, the upper end of the cord securing the tail to a kite rib.

6. A device as defined in claim 1 wherein said tail comprises atriangular fiat rigid plate, releasable hinge means connecting saidplate to one of said ribs.

7. A device as defined in claim 1 wherein said tail comprises a hollowtruncated cone connected to the kite by releasable means, said coneadapted to telescopically receive said kite when folded.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS225,306 Thompson Mar. 9, 1880 464,412 Ansboro Dec. 1, 1891 2,524,500Whitehurst Oct. 3, 1950 2,632,614 Bodell Mar. 24, 1953 FOREIGN PATENTS12,836 Great Britain 1884

1. A KITE COMPRISING A PLURALITY OF RADIALLY DIVERGING RIBS, A CENTERPOST, MEANS PIVOTALLY CONNECTING THE INNER ENDS OF THE RIBS TO SAID POSTADJACENT ONE END THEREOF, MEANS LIMITING MOVEMENT OF SAID RIBS BETWEEN AFIRST POSITION EXTENDING SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL TO SAID POST AND ASECOND POSITION SUBSTANTIALLY PERPENDICULAR TO SAID POST, MEANSRELESABLY MAINTAINING SAID RIBS IN SAID SECOND POSITION, A ONE-PIECEFLEXIBLE COVERING SECURED TO AND EXTENDING BETWEEN SAID RIBS, AND A TAILSECURED TO THE KITE AND EXTENDING RADIALLY INWARDLY FROM THE PERIPHERYOF THE KITE TO A POINT SPACED OUTWARDLY FROM THE CENTER POST, SAID TAILBEING ORIENTATED ENTIRELY BENEATH THE PLANE OF SAID KITE ANDSUBSTANTIALLY PERPENDICULAR THERETO WHEN SAID RIBS ARE IN SAID SECONDPOSITION.